Press Releases That Actually Get Used

Racers tend to treat the press release as a formality: type up the results, attach a logo, email it to every address you can find, and hope. Editors get piles of those, and most go nowhere. The publicists and editors who have spoken at my Sponsorship Summits describe a different process. Decide why you're sending it, send it to the right people at the right time, keep it short, include a good photo, and make it easy to use.

Decide why you're pitching before you write

Heather Wilson, CEO of High Gear Success, writes press releases for racers and teams for a living, and she starts before the writing. "You have to have a strategy first, like why are you pitching it, what are you pitching, who are you trying to reach and why do they care," she said. That applies whether you're going after industry media or outlets outside racing, and the story "has to also serve the outlet because they want it to fit for their audience too." ▶ Watch Heather Wilson explain this

That means research, not a mass email. You want to "make sure that it's going to be a good fit for that media, that you're just not throwing a giant net out to any potential motorsports media," Wilson said. Finding the right person can take some digging: "Sometimes it's challenging on websites because editors don't want you to find their contacts very easily. So a great way to go about that is going to LinkedIn and looking at the company and trying to find the right contacts there." The payoff is real, because "journalists love when you can bring a story to them that's of interest because it makes their job easier too." ▶ See Heather Wilson's full answer

You don't always need a full release

Wilson is the first to say that "not every racer is a writer," and that's fine. Some clients hire her because she has a journalism degree and media relationships. Others don't need to go that far. "You don't even have to go to the extent of writing a full press release. You can just pitch a story idea to the publication and then they can do kind of more legwork on their end."

Dan Schechner, the longtime editor of PRI Magazine, told a summit audience about a man at a SEMA Show panel who said he couldn't write but was good on camera. The panel's advice: "Go make a video, make a short video... find the medium that you're really good at." For a busy editor, Schechner said, "two minutes of their time is equal to reading a press release. It's actually probably better because they don't get that many of those." ▶ Watch Dan Schechner on video pitches

Headline, three paragraphs, photo

When you do write one, keep it tight. Stuart Rollins of Stuart Rollins PR has done motorsports publicity for decades, including six years handling Freddie Spencer's PR for Honda. His formula for a hometown racer: "It's a good catchy headline and it's three or four paragraphs and a photograph. By the way, always include a photograph every time you get it."

Don't assume the outlet already has one on file. "They're not about to look for it anyway, so always include a photograph with your press releases," Rollins said. "Keep the press releases simple but interesting." If you don't know how to write one or build a media list, he said, "find a publicist and talk to him" and see what a local pro charges. For a racer starting out, he said, it's not expensive. ▶ Watch Stuart Rollins on press releases

Clear the photo rights first

That photo can also get you in trouble. Wilson told racers to provide "photos that you have permission to," and to make sure "that you're checking with the photographers and that they're okay to go to media." Some photographers charge more, she said, or don't want their images used by outlets or for certain purposes. Ask before you attach.

Write for someone who doesn't know racing

Local reporters often know nothing about your class. Megan Meyer, an NHRA racer who runs Driven by Social Academy, passed on a lesson Elon Werner taught her coaching students: "A lot of the interviewers, the media, they don't understand drag racing, especially if you're a sportsman guy, a bracket racer." A recap full of elapsed times and dial-ins means nothing to them. "The best thing to do to get your story in the local media is to invite them out to the track and get them involved in the whole experience," she said. "The biggest thing is just trying to share your story, how you got into racing." ▶ Watch Megan Meyer and Elon Werner discuss this

Send it at the right time

Timing matters more than most racers think. "Probably don't want to do it over the holidays or probably not even on the weekend because everybody comes in Monday morning and their inboxes are overflowing," Wilson said. A release can also get picked up because it lands on a slow news day. If it's a choice between sending it late and not sending it, send it, but plan when you can. ▶ Watch Heather Wilson on timing

Keep releases coming, and keep them true

One release won't build a reputation. Elon Werner of Werner Communications, who handles media for NHRA drivers, a race class and the Texas Motorplex, tells clients to publicize everything: "Anytime you're doing something, an appearance, a match race, an event, you go to the PRI show, try to promote that, even if it's just a simple Facebook post, if you can have someone do a release for you, because that shows your sponsors, that shows the media the consistency of activity."

Those race reports can travel further than you expect. Werner recalled asking DHL, a sponsor he worked with, how many people saw the team's race reports. The company was putting them in its Monday e-newsletter, which reached more than 100,000 people and was translated for other countries. Content your sponsor can use inside its own company is value too. ▶ Watch Elon Werner on consistency

Everything in a release has to be accurate. Rollins's rule for dealing with media: "most importantly is you never lie... tell the truth, give him your best shot." Wilson added that reporters you pitch "are not your friends. They may seem like it and some of them may be genuinely good people, but whatever you say is totally able to be published, so don't say or write anything that you wouldn't want getting out into the world." Stay positive, she said, and don't knock other racers or your sponsors after a bad weekend. ▶ Watch Stuart Rollins on credibility ▶ Watch Heather Wilson on what not to say

Find a new angle every time

Wilson's last advice at the summit is a routine you can repeat all season: "Build those relationships and constantly be thinking of new story angles that you can present to them. It's just kind of a rinse and repeat process." Results go stale fast, so think in angles: a new sponsor, a new crew member, a fundraiser, a first visit to a new track. ▶ Watch Heather Wilson's closing advice

The takeaway

• Before writing, answer four questions: why this story, what is it, who should see it, and why would they care.
• Use one catchy headline, three or four short paragraphs, and a photo you have permission to share.
• Can't write? Pitch the idea in a short email, or send a two-minute video.
• Explain things for a reporter who has never been to your track, and invite them out.
• Send early in the week, never lie, and come back with a fresh angle every time.